When National Novel Writing Month (NaNoWriMo) is reaching its end, it is time to start thinking about how you will edit your new masterpiece. As you enter the new year, there will be plenty of time to make tweaks and rewrites so you can reach your goal of one day publishing your work. Many writers can be hard on themselves when it comes to editing, … Continue reading Tips for Editing Your NaNoWriMo Work in the New Year
There are many skills and personal traits that can help you be a better writer. Confidence might not be the first one to come to mind, but it’s more important than you might think. If you want to be successful as a writer, you need to believe in your work and your abilities. You also need to be confident enough to share your work with … Continue reading Tips for Building Confidence as a Writer
At least 8% of US adults are affected by attention deficit hyperactive disorder (ADHD). Folks who live with ADHD find it difficult to focus and may have a hard time regulating their behavior. However, an ADHD diagnosis doesn’t mean you can’t complete challenging, focus-intensive tasks like writing the next big YA thriller or children’s adventure book. Even famous writers like Agatha Christie and George Bernard … Continue reading Focusing Your Attention While Writing with ADHD
If you are asked to list the writing advice you’ve been given, your list will be similar to others. Show don’t tell. The three act structure. Write what you know. This last one is what we’re going to look at today. Specifically, what it means, what the perks are, and how to do it. The phrase write what you know means to choose an aspect … Continue reading Write What You Know. What Does That Mean?
Today we’re talking with a few 2021 debut authors about writing in multiple points of view. As writers we know it’s hard to get the character arc and voice down for one character, but two, three, four? Let’s see how these authors tackle this writing style. TWP: Why did you decide to write in more than one POV? One of the central questions my book … Continue reading How to Write in Multiple Points of View
“For the dreamers who sat down to tell a story that no one asked them to write.” – Before and After the Book Deal I am a dreamer and because you are here, you must be too. That also means you have questions and lots of them. I do not have all of the answers, but I can direct you to a book that does. … Continue reading The Book with Answers to All Your Publishing Questions – BEFORE AND AFTER THE BOOK DEAL
First pages of a manuscript are tough to get right. Advice generally encourages writers to jump into the action to hook readers, but readers need a certain amount of information first in order to care about the people or events. I’ve written about this before in my post “Let the Main Character Drive the Bus,” and now I’d like to come at it from a … Continue reading MYC: The Hook & the Backpedal
A sprint is a timed exercise for writers, usually used to get lots of words onto the page. Today, six of our Winged Pen members give their 7 best sprinting tips. Let it fly! Laurel Decher: Chris Fox’s 5,000 Words Per Hour reminded me that it isn’t always about getting more words or the right voice. I made myself a doodle: 1. I want to … Continue reading A Winged Pen Round-Up: 7 Best Tips for Writing Sprints
There is SO. MUCH. advice out there for writers. So much. And if you’re a good student, rule-follower like me, you want to follow every bit of advice you can get. But even the best advice in the world might not be the best advice for you. I spent a LONG time getting tripped up by one common piece of writing advice: Treat writing like a job. … Continue reading The Best Writing Advice
It’s March and some of us are working hard to get words on the page before summer comes (or school gets out.) I asked my fellow Winged Pen writers to describe a favorite writing technique or a trusty stand-by that they use regularly. Sketch. Use a “marker” for the parts you don’t know. Get whatever you’ve got onto the page and use [add tech here] … Continue reading 7 Simple Trustworthy Tricks for to Keep Your Draft Moving Smoothly
During this morning’s writing session I was reflecting on how long I’ve been at this writing gig. Not in a bad way. Strictly the facts. I’ve written five middle grade novels now. It’s impressive to me when others in the arts share their struggles WITHOUT some big news to share at the end. Just the challenging points in the middle with no “but-now-I’ve-made-it” caveat. So … Continue reading My Writing Life to Date: Stay-at-Home Dad & Words
I find myself, to my surprise, writing a novel in verse. Though I have written poetry in the past, novels in verse always seemed mysterious to me, almost as much so as the work of those sorcerer illustrators. How does one write a story, with narrative, out of a poem? How do you even begin a novel in verse? Eking out one poem feels like … Continue reading The Two Pieces of Advice that Made Writing A Verse Novel Seem Possible
